What is Digg?

How Does Digg Work?

Digg operates under a very simple methodology. Users submit (or "digg") web pages or blog posts they like by entering the URL for the specific page as well as a short description and selecting a category that page fits in. Each submission is open for all Digg users to view through the "Upcoming Articles" page. Other users can then digg or "bury" those submissions (or completely ignore them). Submissions that get a lot of diggs will appear on the main page of the Digg website within the list of "Popular Articles" where other Digg users can find them and click on the links to visit the original articles.

The Social Aspect of Digg

Digg users can add "friends" to their networks. This is where Digg gets social. Users can comment on submissions and share submissions with each other.

Digg Complaints

When it comes to how effective Digg is at driving traffic to your blog, it's important to understand the power of the top users at Digg. The top Digg users have enormous influence on what shows up on the main page of Digg and what stories get buried quickly. One of the major complaints about Digg is the overwhelming power the top Digg users hold. Additionally, users complain that a handful of sites generally get top billing in terms of making it to the main page of Digg, probably as a result of the actions of the top Digg users. Finally, users complain about the amount of spam that shows up on Digg.

Digg can help you network with like-minded bloggers by sharing submissions and commenting on each other's submissions.

The Negatives of Digg

It's hard to get your blog posts on the main page of Digg.

Top users control much of what gets on the main page of Digg.

Traffic that comes from Digg is generally short-lived

Spam content finds its way on Digg frequently.

People pay the top users and other companies to generate diggs for content and move it to the main page of Digg leaving less chance for your posts to get to the main page.

Digg does not like it when users submit their own pages or blog posts and will penalize users who do so too frequently.

Should You Use Digg to Drive Traffic to Your Blog?

While Digg has the potential to drive a lot of traffic to your blog, it happens less frequently than users would like. Digg should certainly be a part of your blog marketing toolbox, but it should be used with other promotion strategies and tactics (including other social bookmarking site submissions) for you to drive the most traffic to your blog overall.